A Twist in Time
by wolf08
Summary: The great war is nearly over, and Konoha is on the brink of total destruction. Join Sakura Haruno on a last-resort mission to save the ninja world and the boy she loves before history repeats itself... A time-travel fic, sasusaku
1. Prologue

**A Twist in Time**

**Summary:** Life couldn't be worse for Sakura Haruno. She was heart-broken, betrayed and at the brink of committing suicide. At times, she even wished that she could start fresh from a new beginning… A TIME-TRAVEL FIC. Sasusaku  no duh! Aren't all my stories?!

**Hey there guys! As you can see, I'm back with **_**another **_**story (I think it might be my best on yet! At least, I hope!) This chapter is the prologue, but don't get me wrong: it's still quite essential if you want to understand the plot. **

**Oh, and I just thought I should say: ninja99k and I are starting a shared account. I haven't actually done anything for it yet, but she's started our first story. Our pen-name is ninjawolf98. **

**Well, I know that no one likes long, boring author notes so I'd better get on with the story. **

**Declaimer: I do not own any of the Naruto characters (although I sometimes wish I did…). Right Lee?**

**Lee: Right!**

**Lee is temporarily helping me back-stage**

**Let the story BEGIN!

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**

**Chapter 1: Prologue**

In the midst of a dark, soundless night, the moon above was shining; a faint beacon of hope. Through a forest of trees, there was a village. A quiet, eerie village. From the highest peak to the dankest ally, not a soul stirred. All but one that is.

The soft _patting _of her feet as they made contact with the soft, dirt road echoed through the night. There was no wind to tug at her hair or light to brighten her features. The climate was cold, the sky was black, and the fog was grey. Her heart felt quite similar.

She approached a flock of stairs and began to climb them. Her hand glided across the metal rail, her legs quivering as they met the icy air. Her stomach clenched with anticipation. After hesitating for a moment, she disappeared behind a set of doors.

* * *

"You summon me?" she asked as she entered the Hokage's office. The room was vast but crammed with books and a variety of other oddities and objects. At the largest desk in the center of the room sat a beautiful, blonde woman; her back straight, her head held high.

"Ah, Sakura. That I did," Tsunade replied quietly. "Do sit down." Sakura obeyed and took a seat facing the Hokage. Despite her fatigue and tired appearance, Sakura was alert and ready for a command. "You were probably wondering why I summoned you in the middle of the night, were you not?" Tsunade asked. Sakura nodded vigorously. "Well then, I guess I have no other option but to explain my reasoning," she said, sipping tea from the cup placed on her desk.

Sakura eased into her chair. She figured that if Tsunade, one of the laziest people in the world, had a good enough reason to wake up in the middle of the night, then the situation must be of great importance.

"Sakura Haruno. You have been my student for four years and are a person in whom I can confide in. I trust you to do this successfully." Tsunade drew a breath. Sakura shifted uncomfortably. What on earth could this be about?

"Before I give you instructions, I will explain to you the situation: Orochimaru is planning to launch another attack on our village," she said seriously.

Sakura stood abruptly. "_Another_ attack?"

Tsunade nodded and motioned for Sakura to sit down again. "Yes. He has somehow been informed that our defences have been weakened. Even I may not be able to withstand his forwardness... After all, I am growing old."

Sakura's eyes widened and she held back tears. "A-and… what am _I_ supposed to do?"

Tsunade ignored her for the time being. 'And, I believe, you have lost someone dear to you?"

Sakura froze. Why did Tsunade have to bring _him_ up? Could he have something to do with this war? It didn't make any sense! "Y-yes I have, Tsunade-sama," she replied, her head hanging.

"Excellent," Tsunade said simply. "This mission is definitely a go."

Sakura's head snapped up. "What _is_ this mission?!"

"It will last a life-time, and I see that you are fit to do it. I am much too old, and you have the ability to surpass me."

Sakura stood again. "_A life-time_?! I don't understand! Am I expected to die?!" she said, fighting the urge to raise her voice.

Tsunade's eyes softened at this. "Oh no! I don't want you to die! It's the opposite! Oh- I don't know how to explain it to you! It'll all make sense once you get there though… yes… You will figure it out soon enough…"

Sakura was flabbergasted. What on earth was she planning? How could this mission be hard to explain? How would she figure it out? Her head was filled with so many questions that she felt ready to burst, but instead she was silent. "T-Tsunade-sama…"

"Your mission is to kill Orochimaru, Itachi-,"

"Wait! How the-,"

"Listen to me, Sakura!" Tsunade yelled. Sakura frowned. "You are to travel west into the forest surrounding Konoha. Eventually you will come across a pool of frozen water. Enter it and your mission will begin."

"What do you-...? Right away? Now?" Sakura asked, infuriated that she didn't understand the situation.

"Yes! Get going, Sakura! Orochimaru will not hold off much longer! He is on the way!" Tsunade said, standing up and waving Sakura out the door.

"M-must I bring anything?" Sakura asked quickly.

"No, you won't have to! Hurry! You are the village's last hope!"

"I-,"

Tsunade guided Sakura to the door forcefully so that she was not able to escape. "Goodbye Sakura," she said before closing the door, leaving Sakura at the head of the staircase.

Sakura felt tears well up in her eyes. Goodbye-? This was it? She was leaving the village forever? Sakura was about to open the door and demand for answers, but then she heard an explosion from somewhere behind her.

Sakura spun around and was shocked to see giant snakes smashing through the villages surrounding walls. Orochimaru was attacking so soon? This still didn't make sense!

Then a thought occurred to her.

If Orochimaru was there, then did that mean that Sasuke-...?

No. She couldn't disobey her Hokage's orders. Without realizing quite what she was doing, Sakura started running west through the trees.

* * *

She ran for fifteen minutes and at last found the icy pool in which Tsunade had mentioned. It looked like solid ice! This made no sense! With plenty of hesitation, Sakura at last took a deep breath and plunged into the waters icy depths.

The screams of her villagers echoed in the back of her mind.

She was then consumed by darkness.

* * *

**There's the prologue! I'm sorry if it sounded too serious, but I'm going to be putting in a bit of humour and fluffiness eventually. Don't worry; it'll all come in good time. Is it good? Bad? Continue? **

**I personally can't wait to write the rest, but my updates **_**will **_**end up being a little slower than "Mission Accomplished" because of school and sports. Sorry. Well, that's enough chit-chat! Say it, Lee!**

**Lee: Review and tell wolf08 what you think! Just please don't give her any major flames! Otherwise, she's all for it!**

**Well-said, Lee! You heard him! REVIEW!**


	2. The Forming of Squad 7

**Guess what! I'm BACK! Ha ha! So, this will be the first **_**official **_**chapter for this story because the last one was just the prologue. But, just for the sake of the story, we'll call this one Chapter 2 anyways. Ready Lee?**

**Lee: Gai-sensei!**

**Huh?**

**Gai: Lee!**

**Lee: Gai-sensei!**

**Lee, you're fired!**

**Lee: What?**

**That's it! I'm hiring Neji!**

**Neji: Declaimer: wolf08 doesn't own the Naruto characters.**

**Thank-you!**

**Lee: Shucks…

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**

**Chapter 2: The Forming of Squad 7… Again?**

Sakura's eyes quivered slightly when she felt sun-beams tickling her eye-lids. She unwillingly opened them. She had felt so relaxed, so comfortable… Something wasn't right.

"Tsunade-sama!" Sakura yelled, sitting upright as she instantly recalled the previous events that had…had… She froze. She was in… she was in… her old bedroom. Across from her, her eyes wandered to her desk. On it sat a framed picture of her old team; squad 7. She sat up to get a better look at her surroundings, but she gasped. Her body was much lighter than it had been and it felt like she had a weight lifted off her chest. Her legs were thin and scrawny rather than muscular and scratched from intense training.

Her eyes met pink.

Her fingers reached towards its source and she grabbed a fistful of hair. Long hair. How could this be possible? She hadn't had long hair since she was twelve…

Sakura rolled off the bed, landing on her feet (she still found it strange that her body was so light). She looked around with a little more desperation. A mirror. She needed a mirror. Ah yes, she used to have a body-lengthed one for her vanity.

Sakura scrambled over to it and literally had to shove her fist in her mouth to restrain herself from screaming. She was… young! She was twelve! Long, pink hair, large, green eyes… It was like a dream. She had been dying to travel back in time so she could…

She paused again and took a deep breath. There was a reason behind this. What had Tsunade said? She wanted her to kill Itachi and Orochimaru? Was she expecting her to become strong enough before she turned sixteen again or did she already think that she was strong enough to set out now? She still had so many unanswered questions… and Tsunade was probably out gambling somewhere. Heck, she didn't even _know _Sakura yet! It was then it dawned upon her that she was alone. The only one who had the knowledge of her past life to build upon. The only one... Should she live her life as she had before for the time being, or should she run away on Tsunade's quest? Should she first build her strength?

For the first time in her life, she truly did understand how Sasuke felt.

That's right. Sasuke. Naruto. Kakashi. Everyone. They were here. All of them. Together. Alive. Sasuke wasn't with Orochimaru yet. Naruto was still his care-free, old self. Everyone was…

Tears welled up in her eyes. Her heart leaped about a mile as her bedroom door swung open. "Sweet-heart? Is that you? I thought that I heard you getting up," said a familiar voice.

"Mother!" Sakura exclaimed, diving into her mothers arms. It had been years since she had last seen her mother (before she moved into an apartment and started her training-packed life).

"Um," her mother replied slowly. Sakura immediately let go and tried to think up an excuse for her sudden outburst, but her mother spoke first. "It's a little early, but you might as well start getting ready for your first day as a ninja."

"My first-... Really? My very first day? I couldn't have asked for a more perfect time to-!" Her mother blinked. "Er," Sakura said lamely. "What I mean is, um, I had a strange dream last night. Sorry about that. I guess I still had my mind on it or something."

Her mother smiled. "Don't apologize. I understand. You've been excited for this day for as long as I can remember! Oh, you should probably start getting ready. I'll prepare breakfast."

Sakura returned the smile. "Sure thing, mom!"

Quickly (because she was used to it), she threw on her old red dress with slits on each side, black leggings, and lastly, her ninja-headband. After grinning at herself in the mirror for a moment, she dashed down the stairs, ate a quick breakfast, bid her mother goodbye and she was off down the street like there was no tomorrow.

* * *

She passed the Yamanaka flower shop. Sakura remembered the last time she had been on the way to the Academy for the first day of ninja-training, Ino had come out of this very shop and the two of them had argued over something stupid (as usual). She smiled and shook her head. Right now, Ino was probably still in there getting ready (because Sakura was much earlier than she had been last time).

She continued walking, enjoying the fresh air, the safe and happy villagers… The last time she had seen this village, giant snakes had been crashing through its walls, and the villagers had been screaming, fires, explosions… She shook it off. That was never going to happen. She was going to make sure of it.

Sakura arrived at the front doors of the Academy. It felt like ages ago since she had last seen this place. Her relatively empty surroundings told her that she was still fairly early. In the hallway, there were hardly any students and only a few teachers making last-minute preparations. She smiled inwardly. She was going to set things straight. Right from the beginning. She was going to make a good impression rather than act like a… well, like how she used to be.

She marched down the hallway, proudly, because for once, she actually _did _have something to be proud of. Heck, those years of training had better not have worn off with this time-traveling thing. But now that she came to think of it, she probably wouldn't have half the amount of stamina in this current form. At least she had much more knowledge than she used to have. Well, let's put it this way: she was much better off than she had been when she actually _had _been twelve.

_Bump_.

Whoops. Sakura had been so lost in her day-dreams that she hadn't been paying attention to where she was going. She looked up and met the eyes (or eye) of Kakashi; her former sensei. "Oh hello, Kakashi-sensei!" she exclaimed with a smile.

He froze and folded his arms. "You've heard of me, huh?" he asked slowly. "How?"

Sakura's eye twitched. Double whoops.

"Er… I've heard great stories about you. You're one of the most highly respected Jonin around here, am I right? I hope to have you as a sensei!" she said with another (and slightly more false) smile.

"I see," Kakashi said, restraining himself from making a flattered expression. "May I have your name?"

"I'm Haruno. Sakura Haruno," she said sticking out her hand. Kakashi shook it and returned her smile. Sakura continued walking and had to restrain herself from laughing. That went better than planned. She was actually starting to enjoy this! Just wait until she "met" the others!

* * *

Sakura entered the empty classroom. _Wow, _she thought, _I don't think I've ever been this early in my other life! _She paused and she sighed. Other life… it sounded so weird to say that.

She walked over to the other end of the room and took a seat facing the window. The school-grounds were still pretty spacious compared to usual, but as moments passed, people were beginning to file in. She decided to enjoy the moment. No war, no nagging, no training, no disturbances, no-

"Excuse me?"

Sakura's ears perked up at the sound. The voice was deep; almost a growl. It was the very voice that she had been dying to hear for the past three years... She dared raise her head to stare at the owner of the voice. Her heart was doing back-flips. It was him. _He _was here. Staring at _her_.

"Sasuke Uchiha," she whispered, still mesmerized by his piercing stare as she had been in her other life.

Other life.

Her eyes were still on Sasuke, but her mind suddenly travelled elsewhere. _Other life… other life… _the words echoed in her mind. It was like a night-mare she had once had as a child and couldn't let go of. It was haunting her because she knew that if she didn't take action, _this_ life would turn _into_ her otherlife. It was all up to her. All up to-

"Haruno, was it?" he asked suddenly.

Time to switch back to reality. This was Sasuke she was dealing with. He certainly wasn't one to be ignored.

"Yeah, that's me," she said flatly. "What do you want?" _How_ was she keeping her cool? She hadn't the slightest idea.

His eyes flashed dangerously for a moment, but returned to his cool façade. "You're in my seat, Haruno," he said, mimicking the flat tone she had previously used.

She stood up. "Oh. You're right- as usual," she added as a gesture of respect. Sakura shifted over to the seat next to him; the exact same seat she had sat in when she was twelve…

Sasuke sat down, propped his elbows up on his desk, entwined his fingers, rested his chin on them and closed his eyes. He let out a sigh but soon regretted it.

"You tired?" Sakura asked, sparing him a glance. "Were you training this morning or something?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. _This girl's got too much of an attitude for her own good, _he thought with a sneer (but _he_ was one to talk…). "I don't owe you any answers," he snapped.

Sakura smiled and shook her head. _Oh yeah I forgot… he doesn't even know me yet. Duh!_

"Sakura!" called a voice from behind them. "You're here!"

Sakura smirked at the new face. He looked so much younger than he had the last time she had seen him. "Hey Naruto! How about you come sit with us?" she asked with a smile.

"Y-you?" he asked, absolutely amazed at his good fortune. Without waiting for a reply he dove across three tables and landed in the seat on Sakura's other side. "Wow Sakura! Thanks a lot!" he said with a grin. "Is it because I look good in this headband or something? I know it's got to be the headband! It had to retie it like thirty-hundred times to get it just right! And you wouldn't believe-," and so on and so forth.

Sakura didn't really understand a single word he was saying, but that didn't matter. At least he was still the same old Naruto!

Sasuke on the other hand, was thinking (Of someone other than Itachi? I never thought I'd see the day!). This girl… wasn't she one of those mindless fangirls? Or was he mistaking her for someone else? She was weird. She didn't giggle when he looked at her, and she was talking to Naruto like an old friend!

After five more seconds, he figured that he had wasted too much time and Sasuke's mind returned to revenge.

The rest of class happened just as Sakura had remembered; Iruka gave a welcoming speech, scolded Naruto a few times and then he called out the teams. Sakura smiled when he got to Squad 7. "Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno-,"

"YES!" Naruto cheered.

"-and Sasuke Uchiha."

"NO!" Naruto yelled. Sakura only smiled (rather than screaming as she had in her previous life).

This was going to be interesting.

* * *

**There's the first official chapter! I hope you guys liked it. But… the updates will be slower. I'm warning you now. School sure can be demanding, huh? Well any-who, here's Neji with the closing:**

**Neji: Review. It was your destiny. If you do, I will lend you my hair straightener so that your hair will be just as beautiful as mine.**

**Ooook… that was a little unnecessary… (but I'm actually secretly jealous of Neji's hair… aren't you?) See you next chapter!**


	3. Meeting the Sensei

**Hiya peoples! Thanks so much for all of the feed-back (it's what keeps me willing to write!) I'm sure you've been waiting for this chapter… so I'm not going to bore you with a super-long author's-note… say it Neji!**

**Neji: Declaimer: wolf08 does not own any of the character… charact… **_**snore… **_

**Uh… Neji fell asleep. Too bad! I guess I'll have to hire someone else at the end of the story! (if you guys have ideas for other people for me to hire, tell me in your reviews!)

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**Chapter 3: Meeting the Sensei**

"Oh Sakura!" Naruto called in a sing-song voice after the class was dismissed for lunch. He skidded to a halt once he was directly in front of her. "Well… since we're on the same team and all, I thought maybe we could have lunch together and get to know each other…"

Last time, Sakura had rejected Naruto. She sighed. She would still much rather eat with Sasuke… but still. Why would _he _ever want to eat with _her_? "Alright Naruto," she said with a smile.

"I promise that I'll- what? You will? Really?" Naruto said with wide eyes.

"Sure!" Sakura said. "It'll be great for team-bonding! Maybe we could find Sasuke too!"

Naruto's smile slowly dropped into a frown. "Sasuke, huh? Why Sasuke? What's so special about him?"

"For starters," Sakura said, grabbing Naruto's arm and dragging him off, "he's our team-mate too. Just because he can be a heartless, angry, selfish guy, he's got to have a few good points too, doesn't he?"Naruto considered this. "Yeah, I guess. Just as long as you don't turn into one of his crazy fangirls...," he added suspiciously. Sakura ignored this remark and dragged him off to a restaurant that was close to the school.

* * *

"Oh, there he is!" Sakura said excitedly when she spotted Sasuke in the corner, leaning against the windowsill. Under normal circumstances, Sakura wouldn't go _to _Sasuke like this, but she thought that the two of them had had a much better start this morning, so maybe things would flow better this time…

Sakura grabbed Naruto's arm again and dragged him over to the corner of the restaurant. "Hi Sasuke," she said calmly (or at least, she tried…) once she was close enough for him to hear her.

Sasuke, who had been lost in thought, snapped his head up. "Oh," he said, panting slightly. "It's you." His shirt was a little ruffled and his hair was slightly matted. Sakura was smart enough to come to a conclusion: fangirls. Boy. She hadn't realized just how bad she had been back then! No wonder he thought she was annoying!

"Sasuke…," Naruto growled, standing between him and Sakura. "We're not here because _I _wanted to come. Believe it."

Sasuke spared him a glance and raised an eyebrow. "Er… what?"

Sakura shoved Naruto aside. "I uh… I just wanted to know if you'd like to join us for lunch. You know, for team-bonding? It's always much more fun to be eating with other people," she said matter-of-factly.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "I don't care about team-bonding. And I'm not going anywhere with you," he said immediately.

Sakura's eyes widened. "Oh," she said quietly. "I understand." It was almost surprising. She was sure that he was different! She thought before in the classroom… he had acted so calm with her…

"I knew it would end up like this!" Naruto said, waving his arms with frustration. "Why'd we come all the way over here anyways? You should have listened to me Sakura!"

Sakura glared at him. That shut him up. "Alright, we'll go," she said glumly, turning on the ball of her foot. They were about to walk towards the door, but were stopped.

"Are you two even going to _listen _to what I have to say?"

Sakura and Naruto spun around. "You weren't finished, Sasuke?" Sakura asked with anticipation.

"No I wasn't," he said, glaring at Naruto. "I was about to say that you guys could stay _here_, rather than having me _go_ with you, but seeing as you're so eager to leave-…," he stopped after realizing that he had spoken to them with actual sentences.

"Thanks for the offer, Sasuke, but-," Naruto started, but this earned him a bonk on the head from Sakura.

"But yes! Sure, we'll stay!" Sakura said with a huge smile.

This turned out being the most awkward lunches Sakura had ever eaten. Naruto and Sakura were leaning against the windowsill on either side of Sasuke. No one was saying a word. _Chew. Munch. Munch. Chew. _That was it. Sasuke was glaring at the opposite wall, Sakura was glaring at Naruto and Naruto was glaring at Sasuke. _Munch. Chew. Glare. _How exciting!

"Finish up Naruto; we've got to go meet Kak-… I mean, our new sensei," Sakura scolded, seeing as he was the only one who was yet to finish.

"Iff amff fwimiff!" he retorted (not very convincingly). "Lethff goff!" he exclaimed, pointing towards the door and walking forwards. Sasuke followed him. Sakura was about to do the same, but she noticed something.

Sitting at a table with her new team was an all-too-familiar face: Hinata. But what caught her eye was Hinata's expression; the way she was starting at Naruto. Sakura smiled. That expression was all-too familiar to her. If she had time, Sakura would have to do a little match-making later…

* * *

The three of them met at the designated classroom. Sasuke made his way over to one of the desks in the front row and sat down, but Naruto and Sakura preferred to stand. "Rrgh, where is he? I thought _we _were late? Are you guys sure this is the right classroom?" he groaned."Yes it is," Sasuke said in a monotone.

"And stop complaining, Naruto," Sakura said. "He'll be here eventually." She too was complaining inwardly, but she had gotten used to Kakashi's lateness over the years.

Five minutes passed.

Sakura sat on a desk.

Ten minutes passed.

Naruto stuck his head out the door.

Fifteen minutes passed.

Naruto had had enough and decided to prank their yet-to-come sensei. He left the door open a crack; enough for him to balance an eraser on it. So when his new sensei opened the door, the eraser would fall on his head.

"Our sensei's a Jonin," Sasuke said, annoyance etched in his tone. "Do you honestly think he'll fall for that childish trick?"

Sakura turned around. "Wanna bet, Sasuke?" she asked with a smirk, remembering what the outcome had actually ended up being.

He raised his dark eyes to look at her- not stare at her- but it almost seemed like he was observing her (as if she were some sort of animal). "Why?"

She rolled her eyes. Sasuke was so dense in his own special way. "_Because,_" she scoffed, "I think otherwise. I bet that the eraser _will _land on his head, and you bet that it won't."

Sasuke raised his eyebrows. "And what does the winner gain?"

Sakura scowled. _That arrogant, competitive…,_ Inner Sakura growled. "For a bet, usually the winner has to make the loser do something. Anything."

"Anything, hn?" he asked, narrowing his eyes. Then he shrugged. "Whatever."

Taking this for a yes, Sakura grinned. It was slightly unfair to trick Sasuke into this, because after all, she already knew the outcome.

Naruto, on the other hand, was throatily laughing. "Oh! Here he comes! Don't make a sound!"

The other two looked up and saw a hand slowly pulling the door open. In slow motion, the eraser made its decent towards Kakashi' head… Sakura was totally positive that she would-

_Swish! Crack! Thunk!_

"Huh?" Kakashi said, looking up at the ceiling.

"What?!" Naruto and Sakura yelled in unison. To their great surprise, the eraser was now lying in pieces on the classroom floor and a kunai-knife was embedded in the wall just about Kakashi's head. Sakura made sense of it in an instant and blew up with fury. "Sasuke, you cheater! You _shattered _the eraser! That's not fair!"

"I wanted to win. I didn't cheat either," he added.

Naruto was just down-right angry. "Aw Sasuke, you ruined my prank! How could you?!"

"With pleasure, actually," he muttered under his breath.

Kakashi looked even more dumbfounded than he had the last time. "My first impression of you guys is… you're a bunch of idiots," he said.

_"Dope!"

* * *

_

Squad 7 made their way out to the roof for a little get-to-know-each-other session. Kakashi sat on a rail opposite to the other three who were sitting on white, marble steps. "Alright, team 7," Kakashi said, "now each of you will say a little bit about yourself so we can get to know you."

"Like what kind of stuff?" Naruto asked stupidly.

"Things you like, things you dislike, your hobbies, dreams for the future… Stuff like that," Kakashi said.

"Wait, wait. Maybe you should go first to show us how it's done," Naruto suggested.

"Alright then," Kakashi said. "My name is Kakashi Hatake. As for things I like and dislike? I haven't really thought about it. My dream for the future… I can't tell you that. And my hobbies…? I have a lot of hobbies."

The other three exchanged glances.

"Ok, you on the right, you're first."

"Believe it! I'm Naruto Uzumaki! I like ramen in a cup, and the kind of ramen that Iruka-sensei got me at the Ichiraku Noodle Shop! My hobby is training because I'm going to be the greatest Hokage so people will stop disrespecting me and treat me like I'm _somebody_! Somebody important!"

Kakashi was restraining himself from sweat-dropping. "Alright then. Who's next? Ah, how about Sakura Haruno! I remember you from earlier!"

Sakura smiled slightly. "Yeah, I'm Sakura Haruno. My likes and dislikes…? I'm not very sure right now. I don't have many hobbies at the moment either. But I do have a dream or mission or whatever you want to call it. I'm going to kill a certain someone because they have… sort of… taken something from me. Something very important." She drew a breath and vaguely wondered if she had made any sense or not. "So I'm going to train as hard as I can so that I will be strong enough to reach this goal."

Silence.

"Really?" Kakashi asked quietly. "I never would have guessed that such a sweet, little girl could have something so horrible stuck at the back of her mind." Naruto and Sasuke were staring at her. "Alright, next?" Kakashi said, breaking the awkward moment.

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I dislike a lot of things and I don't particularly _like _anything. What I have is not a dream because I am going to make it a reality. I'm going to restore my clan and kill a certain someone…" Sasuke left the sentence hanging, causing another awkward moment.

_Just as I thought. But I have no clue as to why the girl would have someone to kill too..? _

"Rrrg!" Naruto groaned, standing up. "I _can't_ believe it! I've got _two _avengers on my team! It's not fair!" he cried.

"Oh shush, Naruto," Sakura said with a sigh.

From here, Kakashi went on with his opening speech about how 66 of all of the ninja who had graduated from the academy would be dropped from the program. He finished by warning them not to eat breakfast the following morning.

"WHY?!" Naruto yelled.

"If you eat breakfast, you'll puke," Kakashi replied simply. After saying goodbye, Kakashi disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Naruto stomped off, infuriated how he was being restrained from enjoying his favourite part of the day (besides lunch and dinner).

Sakura decided that it would be best that she should head to the training grounds right away to test out her strength (and whether she had been able to maintain it through the time-travelling). But right before she was able to leave, she was stopped by a voice.

"Hey Haruno."

Sakura snapped her head around so quickly that she was sure that she had pulled a few muscles. "Yeah Sasuke?" she said, rubbing her neck.

He paused. "Who… who is it you want to kill?" he asked quietly.

Sakura frowned. _Now that a murder is involved, Sasuke is suddenly interested in me? How typical. I guess it's a boy-thing._

"I'm not going to tell you. Unless, of course, you use that piece of information as your prize for winning the bet," she replied.

He didn't speak for a couple of moments. "No," he said. "I think I'm going to save that for a better time." Then he stalked off.

Sakura was confused. _What? Better time-?

* * *

_

**There's the end of another chapter! I hope you liked it! Oh yes, I hired someone new! Guess who it is..? It's Kakashi! Hello Kakashi-sensei!**

**Kakashi: Yo**

**So sensei, what do you think of the story so far?**

**Kakashi: I think it should be more like the story I'm reading called "Make-Out Paradise". **

**Er…Uh, let's move on to the ending.**

**Kakashi: Review and I'll sing karaoke to whatever song you want. **

**Ok then! How about we have a vote for the best song Kakashi should sing on karaoke? Review and tell me what you think! (also tell me you would like to see behind the scenes with me… and tell me who you think of the story too!) Thanks guys! See you next chapter!**


	4. The Bell Test

**

* * *

Hey guys! Man, thanks for the reviews! I've never had so many for one chapter! And as for Kakashi's karaoke… I got a lot of suggestions so I don't know how to chose! I also had a few people ask me to read their stories and I love to! If you want me to read your stories, tell me! **

**Ok Kakashi, you know what to say!**

**Kakashi: WHY??**

**Why what?**

**Kakashi: Why did I volunteer to sing karaoke?! **

**Well, there's nothing you can do about that now because the stage is yours! Take it away!**

**Kakashi sings all of the suggestions**

**Kakashi drops the microphone and runs away to ninja99k's house**

**Ok, I guess I'll hire someone else. Gaara, get over here!**

**Gaara: Yay! Ok, like, here we go: Declaimer: Wolf08 does not own any of the Naruto characters, but she does own this plot. Wasn't I amazing?**

**Yes… um… very amazing. On with the story!

* * *

**

**Chapter 4: The Bell Test!**

Sakura woke up with a start as her alarm sounded. She _was _used to waking up at this hour, but that didn't mean that she had to like it. She dressed quickly and set off to the training grounds.

Naturally, she was there first so she decided that it would probably be best to just sit down and wait (after all, Kakashi wouldn't be there for a few hours still). The sun was just beginning to rise when Sasuke and Naruto arrived at around the same time. Naruto sat down next to her and Sasuke stood behind her. They waited… and waited… and waited…

Finally, after three hours, Kakashi made his grand entrance: "Sorry about that! A black cat crossed my path so I had to take the long way!"

"You liar!" Naruto yelled furiously. Sakura and Sasuke only sighed.

"Alright, let's get down to business," he said, extracting a few objects from his shuriken pouch. He pulled out a timer and a pair of bells. He placed the clock down and held the bells out between two fingers. "The objective is to steal these two bells from me before lunch. If you manage to take one successfully, I will provide you with lunch. If you don't, then I'll tie you to one of these logs so you can watch the other two as they eat. Any questions?"

It was here that Naruto decided that it was the time to strike. He ran forwards and aimed a punch at Kakashi… but Kakashi vanished and reappeared behind him, holding his hands behind his back. "Calm down! I haven't even said "go" yet! You can use any means necessary, including using kunai and shuriken. Ok, that's enough said! Begin!"

The four of them scattered so quickly that all that was seen was a blur.

* * *

Kakashi was rather impressed. The three of them seemed to have the right idea because they were concealing their presences…

"I'm going to get a bell before lunch! Believe it!"

…all but _one _apparently

From here, Kakashi and Naruto had a battle where the Art of Substitution and "Make-Out Paradise" were introduced, and it ended with Naruto being hung by the ankles from a tree because he fell for an obvious trick.

"Naruto is _such _an idiot!" Sakura whispered. "We're supposed to be working as a team! I'd better help him out before I make a move. And Sasuke… wait, Sasuke! Any moment now, he's going to attack Kakashi, who will turn out to be a substitution, and then he'll blow his cover! I've got to stop him!"

Quickly and as silently as she could, Sakura dashed through the bushes to where she remembered Sasuke's attack in her other life had come from. Kakashi was still lecturing Naruto so she didn't have to worry about him for the moment.

* * *

_Now's my chance! _Sasuke thought, seeing as Kakashi was distracted. He reached into his shuriken pouch and prepared to launch his attack.

* * *

_No! I'm too late! I won't make it to him in time! _Sakura thought angrily. _I'd better act fast! _Without quite realizing what she was doing, Sakura focused chakra to her fist, grabbed a hold of the branch Sasuke was standing on, and with the chakra's force, the branch snapped cleanly down the middle.

Sasuke felt his stomach give a sudden lurch when he realized that he was falling. The branch had snapped-? How?! Before he fell too far, Sasuke lifted his weight over to a thicker branch, which surely wouldn't break. He looked up and saw his pink-haired team-mate looking down at him from the place in which he had fallen.

"Don't tell me _you _snapped it!" Sasuke growled.

"No I didn't," she said, sticking her nose in the air. "Maybe _you _should go on a diet!"

That was it. Sasuke snapped.

Before Sakura was ready to react, Sasuke was about and metre away from her, a murderous tint to his dark eyes. _Run! _Inner Sakura yelled. And so she did. And Sasuke was right on her tail.

* * *

"You have to learn to _see through deception!_" Kakashi repeated. "If the bait is obvious, don't go for it!"

"Yeah, yeah," Naruto grumbled.

"Well, I think you've learned your lesson. I might as well leave you h-," but Kakashi was interrupted by a yell.

"GET BACK HERE!"

"NOT A CHANCE!"

Kakashi and Naruto spun around, just as two ninjas came racing out of the bushes.

They froze in mid-action.

Naruto and Kakashi's jaws dropped.

Glued to the spot were Sasuke and Sakura; Sakura had a look of pride mixed with fear and she looked like she had been running away. Sasuke, on the other hand, had a furious expression plastered on his face and he too had been running (but in a more threatening way).

Kakashi and Naruto made sense of it immediately.

_Man, and I though Naruto was the only idiot! _Kakashi thought to himself. _This team's going to have a lot of work to do…Sigh…_

"Sasuke Uchiha," Kakashi said with a raised eyebrow, "you can spend your time chasing girls _after _we've finished our training."

"Pfft!" Sakura said (who had been trying to hold in a laugh, but failed). Boy was Sasuke ever going to be mad. She decided to take advantage of this moment. "Yeah, Sasuke! You can chase me _after _we're done training! Honestly! And you call yourself a prodigy?!"

Steam was coming out of Sasuke's ears. "Har-u-no!" he growled, giving her a death-glare. "After we're through with this training, _I'm going to murder you!_" Sakura didn't say anything for a moment. _Ha! She must be scared of me now!_

"Oh! Did you say something, Sasuke? I wasn't paying attention!"

Twitch.

_The nerve of that little-! Rrg! Does she always have to crush my pride?!_

"Alright, cool it," Kakashi said. "So, does this mean that you want to challenge me head-on or are you guy's just idiots?"

Sakura took a step forward and said, "Well, I don't know about _these_ guys, but I know that _I'm _definitely ready for a fight! Sasuke! Naruto! Are you with me?!"

"Believe it!" Naruto exclaimed, raising his fist in the air (which was really towards the ground since he was dangling upside-down).

"Yeah," Sasuke said. "But not _with you guys. _I'm _never _working with you. I want to take on him alone."

Sakura shrugged. "Suit yourself. But remember that you'll get a lot farther if you work with a team." He only glared at her.

_Hm, _Kakashi thought to himself. _I'm really starting to like this Sakura-girl. She really knows what it means to be a ninja. Naruto may be a little slow knowledge-wise, but he also seems to have the right idea. The only one who worries me is Sasuke. He acts like an idiot and he's too stubborn to work with a team. I'd better keep a close watch on him._

Sakura took another step forward before she dashed off at top-speed. As she was running, she pulled out a kunai-knife and tossed it over Kakashi's head. _Either she had really bad aim, or she wasn't aiming for me, _Kakashi thought.

He turned around just as Naruto's rope snapped and he fell out of the tree. "Thanks, Sakura! Now I can fight too!" he said with a lopsided smile.

"Don't mention it!" Sakura said. "Now get your butt over here and back me up!" Sakura did a back-flip in the opposite direction of her sensei. She focused as much chakra as she could into her fists (which was less than in her other life, but still enough to cause fatal damage), and slammed them into the ground. All of the ground in the area was blasted into chunks.

Sasuke and Naruto were forced to jump up into the safety of a tree. Kakashi turned into a log (the real Kakashi was _already _in a tree). _Incredible, _Kakashi thought. _That technique is highly advanced. It looks familiar though… _He decided to give Sakura an opportunity to show more of her strength so he jumped into the open.

Kakashi spotted a blur of pink and threw a fistful of shuriken in that direction. The blur froze and _poof!_ It became a log. _Where is she?_ Kakashi thought, looking around frantically.

He sensed a presence behind him and spun around. He found himself to be facing an army of Naruto's. _The Shadow-Clone Jutsu? Wow, that's pretty advanced, seeing as Naruto scored the lowest in the class! But still: He's going to need a lot more than that if he ever hopes to beat me._

The Shadow-Clones charged. Kakashi deflected their attacks with ease, but then he sensed a greater chakra behind him. He turned just in time to see a fist with a considerable amount of chakra focused into it. _It's strange, _Kakashi thought as he dodged her attack. _At this age it's very rare that a ninja would even know _how _to focus their chakra at all! And this girl has it down-packed! _Catching her off-guard, Kakashi threw another fistful of shuriken at her. She shielded her body with her arms but unfortunately, the shuriken struck her anyways.

"Oh no!" Naruto yelled when Sakura was thrown back from the impact. "I've got to do something!" Naruto summoned a couple more clones but Kakashi deflected them again and sent the real Naruto flying back into a tree.

Sakura was about to stand up again, but she ended up facing something dark blue. "I've stood around long enough," Sasuke growled, looking from the fallen Sakura to the fallen Naruto.

"Sasuke, you distract Kakashi while I fix up my injuries. I'll be up and ready to help you in no time," Sakura said, pulling the ninja-stars out of her arms.

_Distract, huh? _Sasuke thought angrily, but he decided that it would be better not to argue with her anymore. "I'm different from the other two," Sasuke muttered before taking a battle-stance.

Sasuke started the battle by throwing a fistful of shuriken in Kakashi's direction. "You won't win by using normal attacks," Kakashi said, dodging them. But then Sasuke threw another weapon that snapped a rope. _A trap? _Kakashi thought. More weapons pelted towards him from various directions. He was able to dodge them, but before he was ready to react, Sasuke was behind him and started aiming a series of kicks and punches at him. Kakashi managed to get a good hold of his wrists and ankles, but Sasuke's free hand made its decent towards the bells… Kakashi jumped back just in time.

Sasuke was panting slightly but he wasn't ready to stop. He started making hand-signs and he yelled, "Fire-Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

_What?! _Kakashi thought. _Genin can't do that! It takes up too much chakra! _But indeed, Kakashi was proved wrong because a huge flame was shooting out of Sasuke's mouth within seconds. When the flame diminished, Kakashi was gone.

_Oh no! _Sakura thought. _Kakashi probably went underground! This isn't good… but it will do Sasuke's huge ego a couple of favours… so I'll let him cope with it on his own. _

As predicted, Kakashi's hand came out of the ground, grabbed Sasuke's ankle and dragged him under the ground (all but his head). Kakashi, who was now out of the ground, crouched down in front of Sasuke's head. "Earth-Style: Head-Hunters Jutsu. You were right, Sasuke. You _are_ different. But different isn't always better," he said with a wink. Then Kakashi walked off, leaving Sasuke's head behind.

Kakashi then started running in the other direction. Sakura stood up, and looked around for Naruto, but he was nowhere to be found. _Oh great! _Sakura thought. _Don't tell me he tried to steal the lunches like he did last time! I should have been keeping a closer watch on him. _Out of pity, Sakura then walked over to Sasuke's head.

Sasuke glared at her. _If she makes fun of me, I'm going to burn her to a crisp. _

"Hey down there," she said with a smirk. She crouched down in front of him. "Do you need any help getting out of there?"

His scowl deepened. "I could use it," he said quietly.

"Alright then," she said. "Hold still." Sakura focused a small amount of chakra to her hands and touched the ground in front of him. It began to crumble and give Sasuke enough space to clamber out. "There," she said with finality and moving back.

"I'm off," Sasuke said, standing up. "I'm going to try to get a bell again before lunch."

"Oh no!" Sakura said. "Wait for me! I still have to heal myself!"

"Heal-?" he repeated, giving her a dumbfounded expression.

"Yes, _heal_! Just hold on a second, will you?" she said, sitting down and placing her hand over one of her wounds. A green chakra appeared and after a few moments, she removed her hand and all that was left was a tiny scab.

Sasuke's eyes widened. _Whoa! What the heck is she doing? I've never seen anyone do that who wasn't a medic! _"How do you do that?!" he asked, sitting down and examining the non-existent injury.

"It took a lot of practice," she said quietly and trying to think up an explanation that made sense. "And it's really hard to describe." He raised his eyebrows for her to continue. "You focus chakra to your hands… but not a powerful kind of chakra; a soothing chakra… I remember that it was hard to do for the first time, but after awhile, you get used to it."

"Hn," he said, standing up again. "Well I'd better g-,"

_Brrrring!_

"Shoot! That was the alarm! I wasted too much time!" he said angrily. He started walking away. Five minutes later and after her wounds were healed, Sakura followed suit.

* * *

When they arrived back at the meeting place, Sakura wasn't surprised to see that Naruto was tied to one of the logs. Kakashi appeared before the three of them moments later.

"I already gave Naruto a lecture," Kakashi said. "So I've only got one thing left to say: You pass!"

Sakura smiled. _I knew the whole teamwork thing would work!_

Sasuke and Naruto looked surprised. "But we didn't take any of the bells!" Naruto said. "How did we pass?"

"One word:," Kakashi said with a smile. "Teamwork! All three of you demonstrated an excellent display of teamwork, which is what it means to be a ninja! So therefore, you pass! All three of you are officially ninja!"

It took a few minutes for the message to sink in.

"I'm a ninja! Woo-hoo!" Naruto exclaimed, moments later, wriggling against the ropes binding him to the tree. Sasuke smirked and Sakura smiled. Kakashi grinned.

"Well done, squad 7! Our first training-session will start tomorrow!" Kakashi said, giving them a "thumbs-up" sign. Kakashi started walking back towards the village, Sasuke and Sakura close behind him.

10 minutes later, after he finally stopped celebrating, Naruto realized that he had been left behind. "Hey, wait for me!"

* * *

**Wow, was that ever a long chapter! Well, I guess it could be considered a bonus because when I read stories, long updates are my favourite kind! So what do you guys think of the story thus far? Say it Gaara-chibis!**

**Army of Gaara-chibis: If you review, you can have one of us!**

**Do you want a Gaara-chibi? I'll give you one if you leave a review! Oh yes, I nearly forgot: If you haven't already read it, I wrote another story called "Mission Accomplished." It's complete with an epilogue and a bonus chapter! It's a funny adventure story so read the summary to see if it captures your interest!**

**Gaara-chibis: We know you want us!**


	5. A Personality Switch?

**Thanks for the reviews guys! And I've got good news: Everyone who asked for one got a Gaara-chibi! And now there aren't any of them left! So I guess I'll have to hire someone else… Grabs the back of Sasuke's collar. You're up!  
Sasuke: What?! But I'm **_**in **_**the story! I don't have time to do this!**

**If you don't say the declaimer, I'll make you go out with a 90-year-old old lady.**

**Sasuke: shivers Ok. Declaimer: Wolf08 does not own any of the Naruto characters, but the plot is rightfully hers. **

**Thank you very much! On with the story!**

**(Thanks for suggesting Sasuke, by the way. If someone else has a suggestion for who should be back-stage, don't hesitate to tell me!)

* * *

**

**Chapter 5: A Personality Switch?**

Sakura went straight home after the training. She got a shower, ate a quick dinner, and then she decided to go for a walk. After all, it still felt like _ages _since she had seen the village in such great conditions.

By now, evening had come so the sky was changing orangey-pink. There were few clouds and the sun was nearly completely hidden behind the horizon. There was a gentle breeze to top it off. Sakura smiled. It couldn't get much better than this.

* * *

Absent-mindedly, Sakura took a detour towards the Yamanaka Flower Shop. _I might as well say hello to Ino. I didn't talk to her at all since I travelled back in time. _So Sakura entered the shop to find Ino leaning against the counter. "Hey Ino! Long time, no see!"

Ino looked up with surprise. Her eyes narrowed. "What are you doing here, _Forehead_?"

Sakura was nearly surprised. _Oh yeah, _she thought, _Ino and I aren't friends yet! Silly me! _"I _was _dropping by to say hi, but I might as well leave. See ya, _Ino-Pig_!"

Ino smirked. _Why would she miss me all of a sudden? Oh well! _"Bye Forehead! Don't die on a mission and stay away from Sasuke!"

Just as she was about to leave, Sakura glanced over her shoulder. "Why thanks, pig, that's probably the nicest thing you've ever said to me! I'm touched!"

Ino smirked. "You should be! I'm feeling generous!"

Sakura laughed and left the shop, leaving a curious Ino behind. "What's gotten into her? She _never _visits me…!"

* * *

Sakura's spirits had been greatly lifted and she even shivered with pleasure. _Man! What should I do next? I should really take advantage of being here! _She had to restrain herself from skipping.

And then it hit her.

She came back to reality.

She was here for a reason. She was here to kill Orochimaru _and _Itachi. And _what_ was she doing now? She was sight-seeing. And what would she gain? Nothing. If she was going to be an avenger, she would have to dedicate everything she did towards achieving her goal. She didn't have time to nag Ino or to stalk Sasuke. She had to train.

So after sighing with realization, Sakura made her way towards the training grounds that she had only left a couple of hours ago. When she arrived, she was shocked to find one of her team-mates already there. "Naruto? What are you doing here?" she asked, making her way over to him. Then she realized that he was still tied to the log.

"I-I'm… hungry," he murmured. "H-haven't… eaten…all d-day…"

"Oh, that's right! Here, let me help you out of there!" she said, drawing a kunai-knife and freeing him. _I wonder how he ended up getting out of this in the other life? _"That's better, huh Naruto?"

"Oh thanks, Sakura!" he said giving her a bear-hug.

"No problem," she said, returning it.

"Oh!" said a timid voice from behind them. Sakura turned and saw Hinata for the second time since her time-travel incident.

"Hi Hinata!" she said, pushing Naruto off of her.

"Hinata? Who's Hinata?" Naruto repeated, looking around. "Oh Hinata! What's up?"

"N-nothing," she said, looking down at her feet.

Sakura sighed. _Shoot! Now she thinks that Naruto and I are in some sort of relationship! Rrgh! _"Hey Naruto! How about to take Hinata out for ramen?" Sakura asked suddenly.

"What?" Naruto said, his head jerking upward. "I was just going to ask _you _tha-," but he stopped when Sakura shot him a death-glare.

"How about you, Hinata? Wouldn't _you _like to go out for ramen with _Naruto_?" Sakura asked with a smile.

Hinata glanced at Naruto, blushed furiously and then refaced Sakura. "I-I… its u-up to N-N-Naruto… I m-mean…" but she faltered. She looked like she was on the verge of passing out.

"So Naruto! What do you say?" Sakura asked with another smile (although Naruto could tell that if he refused, she would beat him up).

"O-ok! Whatever you say, Sakura! Let's go, Hinata!" he said with a forced smile and motioning for the two of them to leave. Before passing, Hinata mouthed a small _"Thank-you!" _to Sakura, who returned it with a wink. Heck, this was perfect! Hinata finally got to go on a date with Naruto _and_ Sakura got Naruto out of her hair for once! Perfect!

Sakura clapped her hands together. Now it was time to get serious. Time to train. She paused. What kind of training? She didn't have any medical books with her, so she couldn't practice any new healing techniques (which usually involved a little self-sacrifice on her behalf in order to experiment with different kinds of injuries). She didn't have an opponent to spar against _or _someone of a higher rank to learn from.

_Hm, _she thought, _I might as well start with a warm-up. _So Sakura decided that a lap around the entire village would be a good start.

She began her run through the darkness. She had previously made the decision that she would stay hidden in the outskirts of the village's forests rather than running through it and disturbing the villagers at this hour. The forest was a dark, green blur whizzing past her as she bounded through it from branch-to-branch.

_Gosh this feels good! _she thought with a sigh as her leg-muscles flexed. _I may not have the same amount of strength as I had back then, but my body is so much lighter now that I don't need it! _Her legs propelled her through the trees until she was half-way around the village.

Then she sensed a presence. The presence of a ninja.

_Curious, _she thought, raising an eyebrow and glancing over her shoulder. _It's not often that someone would be out here at this time of night… unless they were me of course, but that's different. _She travelled through the trees for a few more minutes, but the presence still hadn't gone away so she decided to take this matter into her own hands. _If they're following me, I'll have to lead them away. _

So Sakura picked up her pace. Instead of travelling in a straight line, she ran in a zigzagged fashion in hope that the enemy would lose track of her. Her plan was proven to be a success because by the time she reached the training grounds again, the presence was hardly distinguishable.

_I'll stay out here and train for a little while and make sure that the presence doesn't return or attack the village, _she decided. So Sakura made a few targets on one of the logs and practiced her weapons-aim. Although she was a little rusty, her achievements were pretty decent.

She folded her arms with satisfaction and pondered over what she should do next. Chakra-focusing? Tree-Climbing? Physical stren-

_Rustle._

Sakura's head snapped up. The presence was back. _I should have been paying more attention to it! Darn it! _Sakura's heart skipped a couple of beats. Whoever it was was definitely hiding in the tree behind her. Without making any sudden movements, she focused chakra into her fist and on one, large, fluent motion, she turned around and punched the tree-trunk, blasting it to smithereens.

She looked up just as someone sprang out of the tree and landed behind her. She turned on the ball of her foot and drew a kunai-knife. "Who are you? Why were you following me?" she asked as the silhouette of her attacker began to approach her. _Who is it? A villain? Orochimaru? One of the Akatsuki? _

At last, the person who owned this mystery presence stepped into the moonlight.

It was Sasuke.

"Sa-Sasuke!" Sakura gasped, taking a shaky step backwards. "What are you doing here? Why were you following me?"

His expression was cold, fixed and obscured by shadows. It was threatening and frightening in a way too. "Haruno," he said quietly. "_I_ was out here _before_ you. I hid in the trees so you wouldn't see me. I thought you were going to leave, but to my disappointment, you stayed to train. I waited. Then you started to run, leaving your things behind, so I figured that you would be returning. I would have stayed put, but I didn't want to accidentally run into you." His glare hardened in a threatening way.

Sakura raised an eyebrow and took a step forwards so that she too was in the moonlight. "So let me get this straight," she said, folding her arms. "You _actually _thought that you'd be able to follow me without being detected? You must be pathetically stupid."

His eyes darkened. "How so?"

"Well, for one thing," she said, her eyes also darkening, "you know nothing about me. I've been through much _more_ than you'd ever know and I've gained quite a lot of experience from that. I've also been training much longer than you ever have so you have absolutely no right to underestimate me." She pierced her lips together and hoped that Sasuke would soon end this awkward discussion.

"Really?" he said, absent-mindedly staring into the trees behind her. "I find that pretty unlikely, Haruno. Are you trying to act smart or are you just afraid of me?" he asked with a sneer.

"_Afraid _of you? I have no reason to be. I suggest you leave me alone before I get mad," she said, turning her back to him and taking a step away. And another. And another. _Is he actually going to let me win that argument? _

"Wait, Haruno."

Sakura spared him a cold glance over her shoulder.

"I think we have a lot in common. We should train together," Sasuke stated. _Then I might be able to learn more about her strange powers… _

On the inside, Sakura was cheering. Sasuke had _never_ taken such an interest to her in her old life! This is one of those moments that she should take advantage of! But then another voice interrupted her thoughts. The avenger-side of her. _He's only going to hold you back! He's a whole life's-worth of experience behind you! A total waste of time!_

This voice seemed to get the better of her because before she could stop herself, she had said, "No."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "Why not? We're both have similar goals and it would be more efficient to-,"

"Sasuke," Sakura said, fully turning around to face him. "_You're annoying_," she dead-panned conjuring up another cold glare. She then decided that she had done enough training, so she again started walking away. This time, she didn't turn back. _I can't believe that I just said that! I actually used his own words (from the other life) against him! Oh well. I think it was for the best. He deserved it anyways. He usually treats me like dirt, so he finally got a taste of his own medicine._

Sasuke hadn't moved. What the heck happened there? He had followed that girl, hoping to find some sort of lead on her history and her incredible strength, and then he had actually _given _her the option to train with him… and then she had refused? He couldn't see _why. _Who in their right mind _wouldn't _want to train with him? For minutes, he stood there, pondering over the recent events.

In the end he only managed to come up with one conclusion: Rejection hurts, man!

* * *

**Sorry that this chapter was a little shorter. I had actually intended for it to be that way, though, because I wanted to keep all of it separate from the main plot in the series. So yeah, this chapter was a bit of a "behind-the-scenes" sort of thing that was totally not a part of the real series' plot. But that ok! That's what will make my story different from it! And I bet you're starting to figure out how **_**my **_**plot's going to work too (Koff Personality-switches Koff)!! So how do you like it? Say it, Sasuke!**

**Sasuke: Review now and make wolf08 happy.**

**Well that's no fun! I know! If you review, Sasuke will be your personal slave for the day? How does that sound?!**

**Sasuke: Hey! I have to agree to this!**

**No, you don't have to! So how would you like to have a personal slave? Sound good? I'm really excited to hear feed-back on this chapter (because I felt like I was taking a risk with this chapter for some reason), so review!**


	6. A Surprise Visit

**NOTE: I'm going to make an updating-schedule for this story! I'll try to have a chapter out once a week; probably every Friday or Saturday evening (depending on school and sports and stuff like that…) **

**Thanks so much for the reviews! I'm going to keep this author's note short and sweet so Sasuke! You're up!**

…

**Oh yeah, Sasuke was going to be a slave today. Alright then, get over here Itachi!**

**Itachi: What the heck am I doing here?!**

**I don't really care. Say the declaimer NOW! makes evil face**

**Itachi: gulps O-ok! Declaimer: Wolf08 doesn't own any of the Naruto characters, but this plot is rightfully hers! Don't hurt me!**

**I won't… yet… So on with the story!

* * *

**

**Chapter 6: A Surprise Visit!**

Sakura arrived home as an angry mess. She stormed up the stairs, but was stopped. "Sakura! Why on earth were you out so late?! I was very worried!" her mother said, looking up from the bottom of the stairs.Sakura turned around half-way up to the second floor of her house. "Late?" she repeated blankly. Was it really _that _late?

"Honey, it's midnight! I thought you had training in the morning!" her mother said, her brow furrowed.

It took Sakura's brain a few moments to register the information. _Oh yeah! I'm still only twelve! I would have been in bed hours ago in my other life if I knew that I had training in the morning… _"I actually _was _training, mom. And besides, Kakashi-sensei's letting us sleep in until 8 o'clock tomorrow."

Her mother's expression was unchanged. "You mean that you were training out there all by _yourself_?" she asked, her expression changing from worry to fear.

Sakura paused. Well… technically she was _training _by herself, but… "No," she said. "I met one of my team-mates at the training grounds."

Her mother's expression softened and she let out a sigh of relief. "Good. I don't want you to ever be out there alone at this time of night. Have a good sleep, Sakura. I'll see you in the morning."

Sakura smiled. "You too!" she said, continuing up the stairs. Once in her bedroom and she got ready for bed.

* * *

Yes, this night would turn out being quite momentous for our beloved squad 7. Firstly, Sakura was feeling much less cheery than usual and instead of peacefully drifting off into a romantic-dreamland, Sakura's mind was consumed with confusion and desperation. She found that falling asleep was much more difficult this way. 

Naruto, on the other hand, after coming home from his date with Hinata, felt emotionally torn up. Sure he didn't like her in _that _way because, after all, it was Sakura who he liked. But as much as he tried to deny it, he had downright enjoyed every moment of that date. He wasn't torn up by this emotion for very long though because within twenty minutes of thinking (yes, it's hard to believe that Naruto could actually _think _for such a long time), he forgot what he had actually been worried about in the first place.

And for the first time ever, Sasuke fell asleep worrying about a _certain someone _(other than Itachi), who had somehow managed to successfully scar his enormous ego. _I'll show her that I'm not one to be pushed aside, _he thought. _No matter what, I _will _get her to train with me!_

The first three members of this team were feeling much different than usual. This certainly wouldn't be the last night that they experienced these feelings. As a matter of fact, this was only the beginning.

The only member of the team who wasn't changed emotionally in any way was their one-and-only sensei: Kakashi. He was currently sitting on his bed at home reading an all-too-familiar, orange book.

Naruto flicked off lamp (and flicked on his nightlight).

Sasuke walked over to his light-switch and turned it off.

Kakashi fell asleep in the midst of his reading so he wasn't able to turn off any lights.

And lastly, Sakura flicked off her light.

They all fell asleep.

* * *

"Sakura. Sakura!" a voice whispered urgently. 

"Huh?" Sakura said with a groan, rolling over and blinking up at the owner of the voice. "Why do I have to wake up this early?" Her eyes focused and she realized that it had been her mother speaking. Sakura glanced at her clock. "Mom, it's only 5 o'clock! I still have three hours of sleep to catch up on! And it's still dark outside too!" she said, snuggling back into the warmth of her blankets.

Her mother folded her arms. "Well, that's not what your friend told me."

"-Friend? Who told you wha-?" Sakura said, sitting up slightly. "What are you talking about?"

Her mother shrugged. "I don't know actually. I thought _you'd _be able to tell _me_. Here, c'mon downstairs. Your friend is waiting for you." Sakura sat up fully. _I don't remember this from my other life. Who the heck is this "friend" anyways? Could it be some sort of assassin from the future or something? I'm getting really curious! _So Sakura stood up and made her way out of the room. "Aren't you going to get dressed first, Sakura?" her mother asked, following her out the door.

Sakura paused. _If it _is _an assassin from the future, I should probably be armed. _"Alright, I'll get ready," Sakura said, turning on the ball of her foot back into her room.

"Ok, I'll see you downstairs!" her mother said cheerily, going down ahead of her.

* * *

After she was all dressed and ready to train (although she certainly didn't _feel _ready), she made her cautious descent to the second floor of her house. She rounded a bend and at the doorway, she could see her mother's back (she was clearly talking to someone). She took a few hesitant steps forward, hoping not to be detected, but unfortunately, a floorboard creaked, causing her mother to turn round to face her. "Oh, Sakura!" her mother said with a smile. "Well," she said, turning back to the visitor, "it was nice talking to you, but seeing as Sakura's here now, you guys should be on your way!" 

Her mother stepped aside, revealing the mystery person.

Guess who it was? Sakura's eye twitched. _Him AGAIN?! _"What are you doing here at this time in the morning, Sasuke?!" Sakura growled.

Her mother gave her a quizzical look, but Sasuke's facial expression remained unfazed. "I believe that you said you'd like to train with me today, right Haruno?" he asked calmly. Sakura caught a glimmer of amusement in his eyes.

_Who does he think he is?! I rejected him, so he barges in here, gets on my mothers good side, and asks me to train with him _again _right in front of her?! This is a nasty trick he's trying to pull…_Sakura thought angrily and restraining herself from throwing a kunai-knife at him. Sakura didn't give him an answer straight away, but after glancing at her mothers watchful eyes, she refaced him and said, "_Fine,_" in the most menacing way she could (which still wasn't very threatening). Sasuke held in a satisfied smirk with much difficulty. "Just let me have breakfast and finish getting ready," she said, walking into the kitchen without a backwards glance.

Her mother looked appalled by her daughter's sudden change in behaviour. She turned back to Sasuke and made an apologetic expression. "I'm very sorry about Sakura. I don't know what's gotten into her! She's not a morning person, so please don't take anything she says seriously," she said, bowing.

"Don't worry," he replied quietly. "I already wasn't."

"_I HATE YOU!_"Sakura yelled from somewhere in the kitchen (because she had obviously heard him).

Ignoring her, Sakura's mother offered Sasuke a place to sit in the living room, which he tonelessly accepted. After Sakura was finished eating, she went into the living room. "Sasuke," she said with a glare. "We need to talk." His eyebrows rose with surprise, but he followed Sakura upstairs nonetheless.

Once they were in the safety of her bedroom, she closed the door. For a fleeting moment, she realized how strange it was to see Sasuke in her home-environment, but she quickly pushed that aside and came back to reality. "I guess you didn't _hear _me correctly last night," she said walking to the other end of her room and then facing him; squaring him up. "But I frankly remember saying that I _didn't _want to train with you."

Sasuke shrugged. "So?" he said.

"_So?_" she repeated furiously. "Do you think that I'm _so _far below you that I don't _deserve _a say in anything? Do you want to know something, Uchiha?! _I'm not a push-over_!" she said, her voice naturally rising.

He sighed with annoyance. "Alright then, Haruno-,"

"_I have a first name, Uchiha!_"

He rubbed his temples. _I'm getting sick of her... _"Alright then, _Sakura_-… Your name _is _'Sakura', right?" he added. She folded her arms and started tapping her foot. "Er-… ok… um, do you _want _to train with me this morning?" he asked, surprising himself that he actually did what he was told.

_**Cha!**_Inner Sakura exclaimed. _**I finally got him to USE SOME MANNERS! **_Sakura hid her pleasure. "Well, since I'm already awake, I might as well, huh?" she said, trying to keep her cold expression.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "If you _do _want to train, then what was the point of that whole conversation?" he asked. Sakura ignored him and walked straight out of the room to get ready in the washroom. Sasuke shook his head and sat down on her bad.

**By the way, sorry for making Sasuke seem a little OOC! He actually **_**has **_**to be in order for the story to flow! On with the story!

* * *

**

Sakura returned to her bedroom (hesitantly) once she was ready. "Sasuke?" she said quietly and as politely as she could with her vicious temper. _I guess I should apologize, _she thought with a sigh. _We're really starting off on the wrong foot and I don't want Sasuke to _want _to go to Orochimaru. _So with a lot of courage, Sakura opened the door and… she gasped. _No! This can't be happening!_

"Are these… um… _yours_, Sakura Haruno?"

Sakura sweat-dropped. Standing by her desk, Sasuke was pointing at her prized collection of home-made Sasuke-Plushies. What made it worse was the smirk he was wearing… "No," she lied.

He turned to her (obviously struggling to keep a straight face). "Then why are they here?"

Her eyes twitched. _**You'd better think of something good to say or I'll never forgive you for it! **_Sakura's Inner yelled. _We'll you're supportive, _Sakura thought sarcastically. "Er," she said. "I have them because… I…" His eyebrows rose. "You caught me," she said, pretending to look defeated. She walked over to her bed and sat down. "I made them for you."

He cocked an eyebrow. "_Why_?" he asked.

"Um… why? Well, that's because… because… I'm really sorry for rejecting you last night." _Dang! Why the heck did I just say that?! I'm not sorry at all!! _

"What made you think that I'd want _these_?" he asked, making this more and more difficult for her.

_Cha! He left me an opportunity for a come-back! _"That was all I could think of," she said, standing. "What else do you think about besides yourself, anyways?" She took a slow step towards him. His eye twitched.

Before she could get an answer out of him, he walked towards the door. "_Let's go now_," he said with hatred etched into his tone. He continued walking without turning back.

Sakura's eyes widened. _Wow, I must have really hit a soft spot. I wonder why that made him so sensitive? _Trying to push that aside, she followed him downstairs and out of the house.

* * *

Once they reached the training grounds, Sakura stopped walking and folded her arms. "So what are we going to do?" she asked. Judging by the fact that the sky was still dark, she assumed that it was around six o'clock; meaning that they still had a good two hours and a half to train. 

Sasuke too stopped walking. He gave her a glare that said you'd-better-not-protest-or-I'll-kill-you. "I want to teach me everything that you know," he said. "And you'd _better _teach me everything that you know."

Sakura huffed. "Why should I?" she asked, even though she darn-right knew what the answer was going to be.

Sasuke seemed to hesitate before answering. "I need to become as strong as I can… as _fast _as I can… so that I can follow through with my revenge."

"_Tsk!_" Sakura said, turning away. "That's a stupid excuse! Give up on murdering your brother! It won't end up getting you anywhere!" she said, before she could get her tongue or her head around it.

This turned out being a huge mistake.

Before she was ready to react, Sasuke had pinned her to a tree by the neck. "How do you know him?!" he asked murderously, his eyes glowing with his boiling fury. "And _HOW DARE YOU _tell me to give up?!" Sakura felt the back of her head being pressed harder and harder into the tree's trunk.

She tried to speak, but his grip was so firm that she could only gag. So she grabbed his hands and tried to pull them away from her. "Sas… uke…" she breathed. Realizing that she was trying to speak to him, Sasuke loosened his grip slightly. "Th-That's… not what… I meant!" she gasped, gulping down as much air as she could. His eyes narrowed. "Wh-what I meant was… You shouldn't plot revenge… it will get you no where…," she said desperately.

Sasuke forcefully dropped her to the ground. He turned away.

After coughing a few times, Sakura stood up. "Wait!" she called. "I'm not finished!" He started to walk away from her. She froze.

Sakura's head began to spin. _He's leaving me again, _she thought. _This is just like that night… years ago… when he left the village… _She felt tears fill her eyes and she took a shaky step forwards. "Sasuke," she said quietly.

Sasuke turned back abruptly. "_WHAT?_" he yelled furiously.

Sakura shuddered at the cruelty in his tone. _I know that Sasuke hates fangirls… but since I entered this new life, I've been acting worse than a fangirl. He totally hates me! _"Sasuke, that's not what I meant," she said, daring to look up. "I meant to say that… you shouldn't plot revenge because… that's what Itachi _wants_ you to do. At least let us _help _you with your revenge!"

Sasuke closed his eyes. There was a long, awkward pause. "Haruno," he said quietly. With a stinging pang, Sakura realized that he didn't remember to call her by her first name. Either he didn't remember… or as she was afraid was true: he hated her. "For your part of the bet we made, I want to treat me with respect. Just because you understand what I feel, it gives you no right to talk about my life without care." He studied her expression (which was surprisingly stubborn).

"I don't actually recall speaking about your life without care… but I promise that I won't say anything about your family or your brother… as long as you always call me by my first name," she added. She didn't know _why _she had to add that, but for some reason, she didn't feel comfortable when the two of them were on last-name-terms.

"Alright, _Sakura_," he said, rolling his eyes and turning to leave again.

"Wait, Sasuke!" Sakura called. _Do I ever hate it when his back is to me! _He glanced over his shoulder and raised his eyebrows. "Sasuke… it's just… see you later!" she said, waving and trying to smile.

Sasuke shook his head with a muffled, "Bye." He continued walking with a smirk.

* * *

**So how was that chapter? Did you like it? Here, before you review (please do, by the way!), I've got a couple of questions for you!**

**1: I've had a lot of people tell me not to make Sakura and emo-avenger like Sasuke used to be. I can totally understand that, but what about making Sasuke a bit of a fan-boy? Does anyone have a problem with me making Sasuke a little OOC? **

**2: As you know, the Zabuza-saga is quickly approaching. I know that we're all **_**really **_**waiting for the Chunin Exams… so should I make the Zabuza-saga short and sweet? Should I elaborate on it and make it longer? Neither? **

**3: These last couple of chapters have been a little fluffy and "off-plot". What do you guys think of them? Should I have more of them, or should I move ahead quickly with the plot?  
**

**4: Is everyone ok with sasusaku and naruhina? Are there any more couples that you'd like me to include?  
Sorry for asking so many questions… but I sure hope you can answer some of them for me because it will make me feel a lot more at ease if I know what you want to see…**

**Itachi: Review and you can have me as a slave instead of my foolish, little brother! **


	7. A New Mystery to Unravel

**Um… I'm really sorry for the later update. I've been busy. Alrighty then! I'm going to give you all a brief answer to each of the questions I asked last chapter based on your wonderful reviews!**

**1: Yeah, I received a huge variety of answers for this question. Here's my final answer based on them all: He won't be a total fan-boy (because I love his character the way it is). I would never be able to do that. He just might be a little OC- much like he was in previous chapters. **

**2: Zabuza saga… I got so many different answers for this one too… I guess I'll just have to see how the story turns out!**

**3: There will definitely be more fluff and off-plot chapters in this story. I can guarantee that. **

**4: Here are the couples that I've got for sure: sasusaku, naruhina and nejiten. As for inoshika and shikatema… what would you guys like to see? I personally like shikaino, but it doesn't matter to me.**

**Declaimer: I don't own any of the Naruto characters!**

**Sorry for making this authors-note so long. I'll keep them short and sweet from now on! That's a promise!

* * *

**

**Chapter 7: A New Mystery to Unravel**

Before going home, Sakura decided to take a short-cut. She began her walk down the main road (which appeared to be abandoned due to the excruciatingly early time), but took a sudden right turn down an alley that was wedged between two towering buildings. When she was young, she had feared this walkway, and currently, she could still sympathise with that fear. At night-time, this alley would bide as the perfect setting to shoot a horror-film. Its walls seemed to cave inwards from the entrance, ready to swallow you up. Once in it, a chill would crawl up your spine as you dare imagine the horrific events that could happen in such an eerie place. Taking a deep breath and deciding to brave its informalities and frightfulness, Sakura started to walk through the alley.

Thin sunbeams peaked over the walls, obscuring beams of dust and cobwebs. Rusty pipes were sticking out of the buildings' walls like flaky, brown vines. The pale, grey stones on the walls were etched with moss and the concrete ground below here was cracked.

_Wow, _Sakura thought with pride. _I really _have_ changed over the years! If I were twelve years old right now, I would have run away screaming! _Right when her pace started to be a little more rhythmical, she heard a noise behind her.

_Tink._

She snapped her head around. Her mind was running wild. The vague picture of a drop of liquid landing on a piece of metal was conjured up in her thoughts. _Perhaps one of the pipes sprung a leak? _She thought to herself reassuringly. _Yeah… yeah, that must have been it! _She turned back around to continue her walk home, when:

_Tink. _

_Tink._

_Tink._

She froze. Waiting for a few more seconds, and assuming that whatever it was had gone away, she took another step.

_Tink. _

_Hold on a second, _she thought curiously. After taking another step, the sound was made again. _That's strange! Every time I take a step, that sound is made! Is someone following me again?! If it's Sasuke, I'll kill him for scaring me like this! _She decided to make a run for it.

_Tink! Tink! Tink! Tink! Tink! Tink! Tink!_

Her breathing quickened. There was no doubt about it. Something was closing in on her from behind. The noises weren't fading as she gained distance, so she came to the assumption that something was dead on her trail.

When she at last reached the exit, she spun on the ball of her foot and pressed herself against the wall around the corner, waiting for the stalker to step out into the sun. Five minutes passed. No one came. With an enormous amount of will-power, she peeked her head back around the corner. "H-hello?" she called out into the darkness, hoping beyond hope that it had only been one of her team-mates playing a practical joke on her.

_Tink! Tink! Tink! Tink! Tink!_

Letting out a small fearful squeak, Sakura at last let her nerves get the better of her and she raced out of there like there was no tomorrow without turning back. It wasn't the sound that had been scary. No. The disturbing part that had pushed her as far as to flee was the strange aura that she had suddenly felt. It felt so close, that she might have even been starting directly into the eyes of her preditor…

Unknowingly to Sakura, once she was out of view, a silhouette stepped out of the alley. It vanished no sooner than it had appeared.

* * *

When she reached her front door, she decided that it would be pointless to go into the house right now; she had to be at the training-grounds in only a couple of minutes. Off she went, still shaking from her encounter with the unknown. 

She arrived at the designated meeting-spot to find that Naruto and Sasuke had already arrived. She slumped down next to them without saying her usual 'hello'.

"You're much later than usual," Sasuke inquired without looking at anything in particular. She still said nothing, so he added, "Sakura," –courtesy of their last encounter. In her other life, Sakura would have slapped herself in the face to make sure that this moment wasn't a dream. After all, her beloved Sasuke had just addressed her politely _and _on fist-name-terms. Instead, she hugged her knees and rested her chin on them.

"What's the matter?" Naruto asked crouching down to face her. "You aren't acting as outgoing as usu-… Oh my gosh! Sasuke, what the heck is wrong with her?!" he suddenly burst out.

Having been caught off guard, Sasuke jumped up and then spun around. After glancing at Sakura's face, he had to restrain himself from blurting out the same words Naruto had.

Usually Sakura's pink hair would bring out her rosy complexion, but momentarily, there _was _no rosy complexion to bring out! Her face was very pale, her eyes hazy, her clothes dusty and the rest of her was trembling. "Isn't that strange?" Naruto said, turning to Sasuke. "I'm pretty good at noticing strange things, huh? Sakura's as white as a sheet! No wait! She's as white as a ghost! No, as white as snow! No, no, no! I have an even better one: She's as white as a MARSHMELLOW! That's it! She's as white as a marshmallow! But not a burnt marshmallow because burnt marshmallows aren't whi-,"

"Shut up Naruto!" Sasuke yelled, no longer able to handle Naruto's pestering. "That _really_ isn't necessary! Something's wrong! Sakura, what happened?" he asked, his tone more desperate.

"I…," she managed to whisper. "…I don't really know… it was s-something… weird… It made be freeze up… I don't understand it…"

Sasuke and Naruto exchanged glances. What the heck was she talking about?

In a cloud of smoke, someone appeared behind them. "Sorry I'm late! I'm afraid that I got lost on the path-,"

"Shut up, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto yelled. "Something's wrong with Sakura!"

Appalled by his student's rude outburst, he folded his arms. Perhaps the first impression he had gotten of this group was much more than they deserved. "What's wrong with Sakura?" he asked, taking a step forward.

Sasuke and Naruto parted to give their sensei a clear view of her face. Kakashi's visible eye widened. "Oh my," he said quietly. "I do believe that we have a problem. She's as white as a sheet."

"NO! She's as white as a MARSHM-," but this only earned Naruto a bop in the head from Sasuke. "Ow," he said, rubbing the new lump on his head.

"You deserved that," Sasuke growled, turning back to Kakashi. "She only just arrived here. She didn't say anything, and I didn't think anything of it at first… but just _look _at her! Something must have happened!"

Kakashi nodded. "This is curious," he said quietly, comparing her appearance to what he remembered her being the day before.

"Hey, and isn't she a medic?" Naruto added. "She should be able to heal herself! Maybe she _can't _heal it! Maybe this is too serious!" When realization struck, Sasuke's heart sank. He was right. This was very serious.

"What happened, Sakura?" Kakashi asked calmly, placing a hand on his student's shoulder.

She shuddered at his grip. Looking up at her team-mates' stares, she forced herself back to reality. "I-it's nothing. Really. I was just spooked."

They all raised an eyebrow. "Tell us the whole story," Sasuke said. Giving in to the piercing look he was giving her, she started from the beginning of her journey home. She mentioned the strange noises that were made every time she took a step, and the disturbing aura she had felt after she had left the alley and glanced back in it. By the end of her tale, Kakashi had a furrowed brow, Sasuke was still staring at her and Naruto looked confused.

"Wait, wait, wait. So let me get this straight: You think that someone was following you? But a _person _doesn't make 'dripping' sounds! This sounds like it must be some sort of drooling, man-eating alien we're dealing with! That is so cool! Count _me_ in to solve _this _mystery!" Naruto exclaimed, punching the air.

Kakashi and Sakura rolled their eyes, but Sasuke looked troubled. "I'm not saying that I _agree _with Naruto," Sasuke began (earning himself an angry glare from Naruto), "but, shouldn't we go check out that alley? What if this situation _is _crucial?"

Sakura whimpered, Naruto grinned and Kakashi sighed. "Well… I _was _going to give you a mission today… which was finding a lost cat…" (Naruto 'booed' at this). "But I guess we could take a look at that alley before we go find it. We'll have to make it quick though."

"Yeah!" Naruto exclaimed, whooping. "You guys can count on me! I'm the greatest detective in the Hidden Leaf Village! Believe it!"

"Let's go," Kakashi said, standing up. Sasuke followed suit, but Sakura stayed put.

"I-I don't think it's a g-good idea," she stuttered.

"Aw, c'mon! We'll be fine!" Naruto said before dragging her off.

* * *

Sakura led them to the alley. "Whoa! It's really dark! Why did you walk down there in the first place?!" Naruto asked with a shudder. 

Sakura shrugged. "I don't know. But that was definitely my _last _time going in there!" she said, shivers crawling up her spine.

"That's what _you _think," Kakashi said, smiling under his mask. "So no more suspicion arouses, we'd better go through it and take a look right away. Just as Sasuke had said: this situation might be crucial."

Sakura shot Sasuke a look that said how-dare-you-get-me-into-this-mess?! Sasuke pretended he hadn't seen it. Kakashi took out a small flashlight and led the way. "Stay close, you three," he said, stepping cautiously through the entrance. Naruto went next, then Sakura and lastly Sasuke.

"It's really dark in here," Naruto said a little _too _casually for Sakura's liking. She picked up her pace.

"Can we hurry up?" she asked desperately.

Kakashi turned back (although he could barely see her face). "No, Sakura. We have to check every nook and cranny." Sakura sighed. They continued looking through the blackness for another ten minutes. "Well," Kakashi said with a smile. "It doesn't look like there's anyone in this part of the alley. Let's move forwards."

"You heard him, Sakura," Sasuke said. "So can you please let go of my hand?"

"I'm not holding your hand, Sasuke."

Tension rose.

Sasuke's eyes widened. As quick as a flash, Kakashi focused the light on Sasuke's hand and it confirmed that… "Naruto! Let go of my hand!" Sasuke yelled, pushing Naruto into the wall of the alley.

"Well I was just scared! Sorry!" he said, but then he stopped. "Do you guys hear that?" he asked slowly.

"Hear what?!" Sakura squeaked, hiding behind Sasuke.

"_That!_ Listen! It sounds like… like," he turned to face the wall behind him. "BUGS!" he yelled, jumping back a couple of feet.

The other three looked up. Kakashi's flashlight proved Naruto right. There were hundreds of bugs crawling out of a crack in the wall (that Naruto's head had made when Sasuke pushed him).

"Let's get out of here!" Naruto cried.

"Not so fast!" Kakashi said, interjecting Naruto's plan and putting a hand in front of him. "Watch where you step!"

"HUH?!" Sakura said, looking down at the ground. After squinting through the dark for a couple of seconds, she screamed. "SNAKES! HUNDREDS OF THEM!" she yelled, jumping into Sasuke's arms. "GET ME OUT OF HERE! I'VE HAD ENOUGH!" she cried.

"Alright!" Kakashi said. "We'll run the rest of the way! If you see any sign of human presence, let me know!" Without hesitation, Kakashi started running towards the opposite exit. Naruto followed next. Then Sasuke, who was just as afraid as Sakura was (only he wasn't showing it), was forced to carry her for the rest of the way. Sakura had her eyes shut tight. More than anything, she wanted to curl up somewhere and go to sleep. She had had enough with being scared for one day! Although she was acting rather useless, she didn't really care. Something about that strange aura had drained out all of her confidence…

When at last they reached the alley's exit, Naruto dropped to his knees. "We should have listened to you," Naruto said. "I didn't like that one bit!"

Kakashi turned off his flashlight. "Well… I didn't see any sign of human presence in there."

Sasuke set Sakura down on the ground in an upright position. "Are you sure that someone had been in the alley before?" he asked her.

Sakura looked at them with an expression of mingled confusion and fear. "Like I said before: I really don't know. Either it had been a figment of my imagination… or whoever it was is now loose in the village." She paused. "We should report this to Tsunade-sama."

"_Who?_" Naruto asked.

"Er… I mean the Third Hokage," she said, remembering that she was still only twelve years old and the Third Hokage hadn't died yet. Wait, what was she talking about?! She was going to save him before he dies! Yes, she was going to do that, kill Itachi, stop Sasuke from betraying the village, Kill Orochimaru, find out who this mystery person was… The list was building up. _How on earth will I be able to do all that in ONE life-time?! _

Kakashi shook his head. "No, I don't think we should tell him yet. I don't want to worry him until we have proof that someone was actually here. In the mean-time, how about we go on a mission to distract us from this little mystery for awhile?"

"I guess so…," Sakura said with a sigh.

* * *

**Ha ha! I gave you guys a long chapter! Man, that is seriously my favourite chapter so far! What do you guys think?**

**By the way, HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYBODY! If you review, I'll give you a cookie in the shape of any of the Naruto-characters' head! So what do ya say! I hope to see you all next chapter!  
Thanks SO much for reading my story!**

**-wolf08 **


	8. The Zabuza Saga Part 1

**Hey there! Yeah, before I get writing, I've got a little bit of information to fill you guys in on: I've thought out the entire plot for this story! I'm really proud of myself! This story is definitely going to be the longest one I've ever written (even longer than "Mission Accomplished"!!). One more fact: I've made up my mind about the Zabuza-saga. Since my plot is totally different from the regular series' plot, anything in this story that's from the regular series is considered a filler. So the Zabuza-saga will have to be shorter (but not too short).**

**That's enough rambling! On with the story!**

**Deidara: Declaimer: Wolf08 doesn't own any of the characters, but this plot is rightfully hers!**

**You said it!

* * *

**

**Chapter 8: The Zabuza Saga- Part 1**

Giving in to his stubbornness, the Third Hokage granted Naruto's team permission to go on a C-Ranked Mission (which would prove to be quite a challenge for a team who would only compromise when no one was looking). To top it off, the client for this mission had gotten on Naruto's bad side right from the beginning by calling him a "midget".

Sakura could faintly remember being excited back when she had originally received this mission in her other life. But now she couldn't say the same. This mission would be a waste of time. They didn't _need _to fight Zabuza and Haku at the moment. It would also be a waste of strength for what she could reallybe doing out there in the world. She was here in this time right now because Tsunade thought that she could make a difference, so momentarily, this mission would only obscure her vision from what she should really be looking out for. And to top it off, she had really been looking forward to solving that mystery back in the alley. What would she gain from this?!

* * *

"Yeah!" Naruto exclaimed when the five of them stepped out passed the village's gates. "This is my first time out of the village! I feel like an explorer!" Their client, who was a bridge-builder named Tazuna, frowned at this. How could he trust these brats, who had never even been out of the village, to protect him from the unknown dangers that awaited them just up the road?

The journey began. Down the road, towards its vanishing-point Naruto was skipping and the others were trudging. _The faster we get this over with, the better, _Sakura thought with a sigh, her head hanging. With much difficulty, she tried to drown out Naruto and the bridge-builder's bickering. Kakashi was attempting to pacify Naruto before he shot another rude remark at the bridge-builder, which would stir up another argument. Sasuke looked unfazed, but Sakura had a funny feeling that he was feeling the same way she was.

Ten minutes later, Kakashi spied something particular: a puddle. _Well that's weird! It hasn't rained for days! I have a feeling that this team is about to encounter their very first ninja-battle. I'll pretend that I hadn't seen anything yet. I want to see who this villain's target will be and how the team will react… _

_SPLOOSH!_

"Get ready for a fight!" Sakura said, drawing another kunai-knife to replace the one that she had just thrown into the puddle. "There's more than one of them! Protect the bridge-builder and stay close!" Sakura stood in front of the others protectively. Kakashi was surprised and slightly impressed that she had been able to catch that hint too, but he was also a little disappointed that she had blown his plan.

_I understand that Kakashi-sensei had been intending to find out who their target was… but that doesn't matter. I already know that they are after the bridge-builder. We have to get this fight over with quickly. _Soon after her knife struck the water's surface, the two demon brothers sprang out. They were dressed in assorted kinds of armoury comprised of different patterns, colours and materials.

"You brat!" one of them yelled through the metal mask covering the bottom half of his face.

"Stand back!" Kakashi yelled. "Protect Tazuna and let me handle this!" Kakashi was now standing in the front.

The two brothers decided to make him their first target. Before Kakashi was ready for their attack, they had shot chains out of the large devices on their hands. Kakashi was bound in the chains for a moment, but then they tightened and his body was sliced apart. "Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto cried, losing more and more courage by the second. Sakura remembered this happening in her other life, and knew that this was her chance to strike… but Sasuke beat her to it.

He sprang into the air, and just as Sakura remembered it, he threw weapons at the chains. The weapons planted themselves in tree-trunks, bounding both the chains and their enemies to the trunks as well. Surprised, the demon brothers tugged at the chains, but they wouldn't come loose. They would have swore if Sasuke hadn't attacked them again, breaking the chains off entirely.

Naruto, who was shocked at the fact that they had entered a battle like this so soon, planted himself to the spot and stared at the fight with awe. Sakura folded her arms. _Man. Even though Sasuke has so much less experience than me, I've got to give it to him: he really knows how to act under pressure. I'm happy that he isn't an enemy! _

Realizing that they were fighting a losing battle, the demon brothers decided that it was time to get down to business and kill their original target. So without giving Sasuke a chance to respond, they charged away from him. At first, they started their mad dash towards Naruto, who froze, but then they passed him and started running at the bridge-builder.

_It's my turn to take action… finally! _Sakura thought, stepping in front of the bridge-builder and loading a dangerously high amount of chakra into her fists. Sasuke's eye's widened when he saw that his team-mate was willing to step into his battle. But then his eyes narrowed. _She's probably trying to steal my glory. _So without further hesitation, Sasuke disappeared and reappeared in front of Sakura in a protective and competitive manner. "Don't worry! I've got you covered!" he called to her, clearly not seeing her chakra-loaded fists.

She was unable to stop her actions once she had committed them. Her arms started moving forwards. "Get out of the way!" she yelled at Sasuke- her fists inches away from his back. He turned back just as she kicked him in the leg. His leg crippled beneath him and he fell forwards, giving Sakura's fists a full view of the demon-brothers' faces. KA-POW! They were sent flying back into a tree.

Kakashi suddenly appeared before the fallen brothers. "Well, well. I guess you guys didn't need me to butt in after all." At the first glance, Kakashi looked amazed, but after studying his expression for a few moments, you would spot the fear tangled in with his amazement. This Sakura-kid was so beyond the other two that he was almost afraid that she was being possessed or was under some sort of strength-enhancing jutsu. He tried to shrug it off and he walked over to Sasuke and Sakura. "Great job, you two. I'm glad to see that you know how to act when under pressure." Then he turned to Naruto. "I really didn't think that you'd freeze up like that. I just think that you'll have to-,"

"You were fine, Naruto!" Sakura suddenly butt in. The others looked at her with wide eyes. "I mean, it was only his first real battle. Sasuke and I already know how to react to danger. We don't fear injury."

"We don't-?" Sasuke suddenly said, raising an eyebrow.

Kakashi's admiration and worry grew. "That is very… noble of you," he said, trying to find the right words to say. He had to restrain himself from saying, _How the heck can you say something like that? You're only twelve years old and you don't fear being injured?! Why do you know how to react to danger? WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?! _

Naruto looked slightly offended. Of course he knew how to react to danger! He was a ninja! He had just been overly-excited and his nerves had gotten to him. Yeah, that's it! It was only his nerves!

Sasuke shoved his hands into his pockets. _"We don't fear injury." _He didn't? Since when? And what had she meant by that in the first place? Was it because she was a healer-ninja and she could patch up wounds in a jiffy?

After Kakashi had received his fair share of information from the demon brothers, he tied them to a tree, discussed the new information with the bridge-builder, and led the team onwards to the Land of Waves. Soon after, Naruto vowed to protect the bridge-builder on the new injury he had inflicted upon his own hand. The others respected his actions, but Kakashi told him that if he lost any more blood, he would die. After ending Naruto's panic-attack with a threat, Sakura healed his injury.

They walked for a few minutes still before meeting a fork in the road. One of the two led off into the forest. The group began walking the other way (just as they had in Sakura's other life). Sakura started to follow them, but then she froze. "K-Kakashi-sensei?" she said suddenly. The others turned back.

"What is it?"

"It's just… I think that we should go the other way. It will be safer." The others glanced down the other path.

Naruto scratched his head. "Man, if anything, that other road looks even scarier than this one. What made you think that?"

Sakura gulped. She wouldn't and couldn't tell them the reason: it was because she knew that by now, Zabuza was on their trail. Last time, they had continued down the main road, but Zabuza had caught up with them and they were forced to battle. But if they go the other way, perhaps they will have a better chance of escaping. "I just… you guys have to trust me! I know for a fact that the other way will be better!"

Tazuna, Sasuke and Naruto were curious about her sudden reasoning, but Kakashi was again worried. _Is she trying to lead us into a trap? If she's under some sort of evil-beings jutsu, I don't know if we'd be able to trust her. But then again… this girl seems to have wisdom beyond any of us… it almost seems as if she is able to predict what is yet to come… _"Why?" Kakashi asked suddenly. "According to our map, this way will be faster. Why do you want to go down that darker path?"

"It's because…," Sakura said, her mind being strained to find a safe response. "…I've been here before. Last time, I went that way and we were ambushed. And… for the past while… I sensed a new presence following us. I thought that they would go away but they didn't. We should go the other way to lead them off track."

Their eyes widened. "What?!" Kakashi said. Naruto look confused and Sasuke spun around, looking for the ambusher.

Sakura felt bad for lying, but she hadn't really been given a choice. She hadn't actually sensed a presence yet, but how else would she be able to warn her team about Zabuza (who was waiting just up ahead)? "Now if you all would like to keep on living, I would suggest that we get a move on. Follow me," Sakura said, running down the darker path.

Tazuna and Naruto, who were now scared that there was a person was stalking them, followed right on her tail. Sasuke stared at her for a moment. _She was able to sense another presence?! I didn't sense anything! Just how talented _is _she?! Or was she just trying to sound tough? _Sasuke frowned. _Either way, I think that the two of us are going to have to have a nice long talk about this later. _He followed.

Taking up the rear was Kakashi. He hadn't been able to sense the presence either. He was following her out of curiosity; not trust. Momentarily, he was not able to freely trust Sakura as he had been before. At least… not until he got the truth out of her. Even if he had to use force.

* * *

Proving Sakura's guess from earlier correct, they successfully arrived at Tazuna's house without further delay. _Thanks goodness I remembered that, _Sakura thought with a sigh. _We don't need to fight right now. And I'm sure that if I asked Tazuna, he would explain the whole Zabuza-story to Kakashi so that he wouldn't miss out on any information that he had missed in my other life. I can also talk to him a bit too. _They were introduced to the rest of the family: Tsunami (the bridge-builder's daughter) and Inari (his grandson).

Naruto and Inari quarrelled a little (Inari actually left the room), and Sakura, surprising the bridge-builder, brought up the whole "Gato and Zabuza matter". Kakashi, who was interested, joined him in a conversation about it. Naruto had followed Inari upstairs and had heard him crying through the door so he decided to leave him be.

Sakura was calmly sipping her tea and trying to remember what had been happening at this time the last time she was twelve. _At this time, we would probably still be fighting Zabuza. And then we'd arrive here and wait for Kakashi to heal. Tomorrow we'll be tree-climbing… great. Another waste of time. _

Sasuke was starting at his freshly served cup of tea. He didn't know what to do with himself right now. He desperately wanted to talk to Sakura alone. Wait. Scratch that. He desperately _had _to talk to Sakura alone (because an Uchiha would never be in a hurry to talk to someone just because they wanted to). But how would he ask her? He wouldn't pull a 'Naruto' and trick her into going into a room and locking her in it. He didn't want to bring it up randomly in a conversation because Sakura was very smart and would probably sense the anxiety in his tone. And he certainly wouldn't ask her _normally _because Uchiha's weren't normal and that would also be embarrassing.

Sakura was now finished her tea. She stood up and stretched. "Well I guess I'll go take a short walk outside," she said with a sigh. _It'll give me some time to think over this new life of mine. _

_Now's my chance! _Sasuke thought, also standing up.

"Um… Sakura, was it?" Tsunami asked. "If you don't mind and if you've got nothing to do, would you like to help me with the dishes? I've never had so many guests here for a long time and surprisingly, that Naruto-kid cleaned six plates."

Sakura smiled. "Sure," she said, walking over to the sink. _Maybe I _should _do something to keep my mind off this stuff for a little while…_

Sasuke stared at her for a few seconds with disbelief.

"Where are you going, Sasuke?" Kakashi asked.

Sasuke's head jerked back around. "I… I'm going… to train," he lied, leaving out the back door to make up for his previous, sudden motion. He sat on the end of a dock and started out at the sea. _I'm such an idiot, _he thought with a groan. _I really should have stayed seated! What a foolish mistake!_

Sasuke wasn't so keen to train as he usually was. He still had a sore leg from their previous fight (when Sakura had kicked him) and his mind was too preoccupied. So he just sat there, gently kicking his legs over the water's surface and starting into the distance.

* * *

When Sakura had finished the dishes, Naruto had returned to the kitchen and had sat down at the table. Sakura too sat down (Kakashi and Tazuna were still talking about Gato and Zabuza). "I'm bored," Naruto said, stifling a yawn.

"Well, make yourself useful then!" Tsunami said, putting a hand on her hip. "How about you go chose where you'll be sleeping tonight?"

"Yeah!" Naruto exclaimed, punching the air and running out of the room. Seconds later his head peeked back around the corner. "Where _can_ we sleep?"

"Well, we've got a spare room in the basement and a pull-out bed on the main floor in the living room. Where would you like to-,"

"The pull-out bed!" Naruto exclaimed but Kakashi shook his head.

"_I'm _sleeping on the pull-out bed," Kakashi said. Naruto frowned. _Grr! Just because he's two ranks higher than me it doesn't mean that he can get everything he wants! _"The three of you can share the spare room in the basement."

"What?!" Sakura screamed. _I'm going to be stuck in the same room as Naruto and Sasuke?! Why can't _I _have the pull-out couch?! I don't remember this from my other life! Had we actually _shared

Naruto looked delighted. "It will be just like a sleepover! This is going to be fun!" He then grabbed Sakura's arm and dragged her to the spare room.

Their jaws dropped. Yes the room was big enough for the three of them but it was… empty. "No furniture?" Naruto yelled. "What do we do now?!"

Sakura sighed. "Uh… use our sleeping bags maybe?"

"Ooooh that's it! You're so clever, Sakura!" Naruto said, pulling out his sleeping bag and laying it in the middle of the spacious room. Then he took out a piece of chalk and started marking things down on the floor.

"What are you doing," Sakura asked raising an eyebrow. Naruto was drawing two big boxes on the floor.

"What does it _look _like I'm doing? I'm giving you and Sasuke places to sleep! Here, this is where you'll sleep," he said, pointing at the box he had drawn next to his sleeping bag. "And this," he said, running to the far corner of the room and drawing another box, "is where Sasuke will sleep! Isn't that great? You see, I can be clever too!"

"Not really," Sakura said, putting her head in her hands. "Me and Sasuke'll have to switch places. I want to have some space."

Naruto shot her a look of disgust. "Ew! I'm not sleeping so close to Sasuke! He'll drool all over me, he'll kick me and he might-"

Sakura chuckled and put her bag down. The two of them went back upstairs. "Now what do we do?" Naruto asked.

Sakura shrugged. "How 'bout a game of cards?" Tazuna offered.

"Ok!" Naruto said. "What kind of deck do you have?"

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is: what are the pictures on the cards? Are they animal cards, rainbow-coloured cards or cards with a picture of a cartoon person on them?"

Tazuna looked confused. "They're… um… normal cards."

"Aw man! Not the boring grown-up cards!" Naruto whined. Sakura rubbed her forehead.

"What about Inari?" Kakashi suddenly asked. "Will he want to play?"

Tazuna shrugged. "I'll go see if I can bribe him." He left the room.

"And what about that other boy?" Tsunami asked. "Wasn't there a forth to your party?"

"Oh yeah," Naruto said glumly. "Nah, he shouldn't play. He's not smart enough to understand how." Sakura and Kakashi rolled their eyes.

"He went out to train," Kakashi said with a sigh. "Man will he ever be tired tomorrow morning. I've got quite an exercise planned for you three…" Naruto groaned.

"Train?" Sakura repeated. _What a stupid avenger-idiot! Is he ever going to know what it means to have _fun"I'll go drag him back in here," she said, standing up and leaving out the back door.

The pink and orange sky was reflected on the calm waters surface. The suns beams increased the sheen of the ripples, nearly blinding Sakura for a moment. When her eyes were again focused, she was surprised to see someone wearing the Uchiha crest sitting at the end of the dock. Sasuke looked very much like a little boy at the moment; toes dipped in the water and his legs were kicking back and forth. _Hmm… I thought he said he was going to train?_ she thought, raising an eyebrow. _But oh well. It's nice seeing that he knows where to draw the line and take a break. _Sakura walked down to the end of the dock and stood a few feet behind him. "Sasuke?" she asked. "Would you like to play a game of cards? Everyone else is playing, and we didn't want you to be left out."

Sasuke hadn't moved since she had spoken. Back still turned, Sasuke said, "Can I talk to you?"

Surprised, Sakura said, "Is it urgent?"

He glanced over his shoulder for a moment. "No… but it's kind of important."

Sakura frowned. Why would he want to talk to her all of a sudden? "How about we wait until later? They're starting the card game now." Sasuke had to force himself to hold in a shocked expression. _Rejected again?! _"Come on. They're all waiting for you," Sakura said, walking back towards the house. After a few more moments of silence, Sasuke followed suit.

* * *

After losing six games of cards, Naruto was feeling cranky. When Sasuke, Sakura and he had entered the large spare room, he immediately said, "I'm sorry to ruin any happiness you had, Sasuke, but I'm not going to let you sleep next to me. I know that you'd really been looking forwards to have someone to drool all over, but I'm sorry. You'll just have to sleep in a corner."

"Who ever said that I was sleeping next to you?" Sasuke asked.

"I did," was Naruto's reply. "I drew the places that we have to sleep tonight, and Sakura didn't want to sleep next to me so-"

"Shut up, Naruto. I'm tired!" Sakura yelled, unrolling her sleeping bag. The three of them took turns getting ready in the small washroom, and then they got into their sleeping bags. Naruto was still in the middle of the room and Sasuke and Sakura were in the two far corners. "Goodnight," Sakura said with a yawn.

"Yeah," Naruto said, also yawning.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Zzz." Alleluia. Naruto was asleep.

Sasuke lay awake for several minutes before an idea dawned upon him: He could _finally _talk to Sakura! "…Sakura? I'm going to talk to you now whether you like it or not." Sakura grunted and he considered it as permission. "I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but can you tell me about your past? I mean… you already know so much about me… and before you told Kakashi that you and I already know what's it's like to face danger and that we don't fear injury. What's your story? How did you get so strong and how did you know about me?"

"…"

"Sakura?"

"…"

"Did you hear what I said?"

"…"

Sasuke sweat-dropped. "Don't tell me you're sleeping," he said with a growl.

But she was.

And thank the Lord above that it was dark because Sasuke's facial expression was priceless. _I'm going to kill her in the morning! Arughhh! How dare she fall asleep when I was talking to her?!! _

Feeling again rejected, Sasuke fell asleep too.

Naruto dreamt of ramen, Sasuke dreamt of Sakura and Itachi laughing at him, and Sakura dreamt of the alley.

* * *

**Woot woot! That was one long chapter! Hence, that's why it took so long to update (I was also pretty busy). Yeah, I 'wrote around' the first encounter they have with Zabuza. Don't kill me! As I said before: I want to get moving with this plot (and if I used every battle scene, I would end up procrastinating on them… and that's no fun. This story would NEVER end!) **

**Hey would any of you be interested in checking out my other stories (unless you already have)? I know that they don't have as many reviews, but that's because I updated the first 5 chapters at once (stupid, I know). The two stories in that situation are "Konoha Adventures" and "Mission Accomplished" (Mission Accomplished is my favourite of all time!!!).**

**Deidara: Review and wolfy will be really happy!!**

**Sasuke: That's right! Review before Deidara explodes! (this will make sense to you if you're keeping up with the Naruto manga). **

**Deidara: Hey!**

**I hope you liked the chapter and I hope to see you next time!! **


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